Taking inspiration from her work as a consultant surgeon, Mhairi Collie’s debut novel, The Bright Fabric of Life, is an example of how fiction has the ability to evoke empathy rarely found in other forms of writing. SNACK spoke to Mhairi to find out why this story, and why now.
How do you describe The Bright Fabric of Life to people?
I usually describe it as a Grey’s Anatomy-style romcom novel telling the story of two women and how they connect – beautiful Sylvie from Ethiopia, whose life is derailed by a disastrous childbirth, and feisty Juliet, struggling with many challenges as a trainee surgeon. It’s a feel-good story with a little romance and a little medical drama, providing some insights into the psyche of a female surgeon and the fate of many women in Africa.
Why was this a story you wanted to tell, and was it always going to be in the form of a novel?
I have worked as a volunteer in Africa for over 20 years, seeing and treating women like Sylvie who have the most awful time with childbirth injuries called fistulas. Their stories are untold – they are a lost tribe of girls and women, cast out of society because of the taboo nature of their injuries. Childbirth injury is a really common problem but has very little airtime in literature, arts, film etc. I feel that fiction has a special power to convey deep emotional truths and I really wanted to harness some of that power so that people would hear these stories, feel moved, and feel akin to these women.
Can you talk a bit about your central characters, Juliet and Sylvie?
Yes – they are quite different characters. Sylvie is really wonderful – full of life and optimism and love, just wanting to look after everyone around her and see the beauty of the world alongside her. She is devastated by what happens to her and has to find her way again without the landmarks she has had previously – her friends, job, relationship, and plans. She does this so bravely, without bitterness or anger.
Juliet is a bit more edgy and chippy after surviving surgical training in London, but is also brave and determined to be a positive force in the world. She is not coping well with the main challenge of life as a medic – how you deal with things which go wrong – and part of this goes back to an unresolved issue from her childhood. She goes to Ethiopia to have a reset.
They find each other at the right time for both. How did their stories develop, and did you always know that this is how their relationship would unfold?
I wanted to emphasise the duality of the relationship between a doctor and a patient – how much each can influence the other. I was also aware of how needy Juliet is, and how working in Ethiopia is healing for her, rather than her being some sort of saviour. As I imagined the characters in their different lives, I began to see how each woman could really help the other and how common the themes are which connect them – love, guilt, worry, and hope.
Do you think that writing about illness in fiction does something which memoir or nonfiction could not?
I hope so. Fiction allows room for readers’ own imaginations to fill in the gaps, and to allow their own emotions to resonate with those of the characters. I found writing fiction to be very freeing in that I was not constrained by actual events, but could let my various experiences of illness influence my characters.
The Bright Fabric of Life is in no small part about healing, but it’s also about hope, even in the most difficult times. Was there a balance to be struck between hope and reality as you have experienced it?
Absolutely – I think I set out to write an uplifting story with a hopeful, optimistic ending. These are the books I enjoy reading, and I think if you want to move people then you have to offer hope. I am aware, of course, that for many women and girls there is no happy ending, but I think part of the point of raising the whole topic is to say that there can be and here’s how.
Proceeds from the book go towards treating fistula. Was writing it also about raising awareness?
Very much so – these girls and women are so excluded from society that their stories are really not well known, even in the medical world. It’s almost accepted with a shrug that bad things happen in childbirth. But too many bad things are happening – and I think more people need to know about it if we are to try to stop them from happening.
Where can people find out more about fistula and the work you and others do?
I have some links to fistula charities, including my own one, on my website, and there is also a United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) campaign called End Fistula. Other charities include Freedom from Fistula and the Fistula Foundation.
The Bright Fabric of Life is published by Polygon. Available here.
For more information about charities working to end fistula, see mhairicollie.com and endfistula.org
